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Lutheran Community Care Centre Tel: (807)345-6062 Board President Executive Director Registered Charitable Organization:
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LCCC News Jan. 21, 2008 Circle of Friends Choir One of the many special programs that the Lutheran Community Care Centre is involved in is the Circle of Friends Choir. The choir is very unique in that most of its members are people with developmental disabilities who just love to sing and love the atmosphere of friendship and fun in the group. The choir director is Jenny Sharpe. The Circle of Friends Choir had humble beginnings; starting out in November of 2004 after a request by some of the Walking Club members to sing Christmas concerts at nursing homes. Sharpe said things began to develop quickly. “We didn't have much lead in time to prepare, but I was able to get an opening at Bethammi and the interested singers met for two short practices in the space which was then shared between Wesway and LCCC in Luther Court on Court Street. At that time, we didn't have any traditional musical accompaniment. However, a volunteer was able to strum a few chords on her auto-harp to keep us on the same key. Apart from that, we sang without accompaniment. Our upcoming concert was announced at the LCCC Board meeting, and we were joined by one of the Board members.” In January of 2005, some of the choir members thought it would be a good idea to begin practices for spring concerts at nursing homes. Sharpe then began looking for a volunteer pianist and a place to practice. Verna Puhalski, who is the organist at Broadway United Church, agreed to accompany the choir and the Salvation Army Community Church on Victoria Avenue agreed to give the choir a practice space. Puhalski and Sharpe then began looking for music in the public domain, which would be interesting and fun to sing and which would be attainable for people who do not read music. Practices began in February 2005 and at one of these practices; choir members came up with the name "Circle of Friends" before the first concert. The Circle of Friends Choir performed a combination of sacred and secular music at several nursing homes that spring and sang a selection of songs at the Inclusion Week Launch. As a result of that, the choir was asked to perform at Benny Birch's Birthday Party in June of 2005 and participated at Hilldale Lutheran Church's coffee house. The choir also sang at a Sunday morning service at the Salvation Army. That fall, the choir participated in some worship services organized by Audrey, a pastoral care worker. The experiences of that first year provided the pattern of practices and performances for following years. From the beginning, the Circle of Friends Choir has been composed of a mixture of participants of the LCCC Community Support Services Program, current and past LCCC Board members, and others interested in participating in this music ministry. Michelle, a member of the choir since its inception, said she loves the choir because it allows her to be with friends and to follow her passion of singing. “I’ve met many wonderful people here so I love to be able to come out and sing with them. Unlike other choirs; I can make a commitment and it doesn’t cost anything. It’s just really been fun and we get to sing other songs too; not just gospel. Sometimes we’ve done songs from The Beatles and Broadway songs and we also get to perform at Christmas parties.” Sharpe added that the choir wants to bring music and ministry to people who may not ordinarily have access as well as
to provide a forum of music, fellowship, and fun for its members. “The goals of Circle of Friends are to fulfill a
ministry of music to residents of nursing homes and the larger community; to promote friendship, fellowship and a sense
of purpose among choir members; to develop team cohesion through a love of singing, to enhance those feelings of self
esteem which develop when challenges are met, and, just as important, to have fun during the process.”
LCCC Street Reach Ministries Resource Centre Extends a Helping Hand The Lutheran Community Care Centre’s popular Street Reach Ministries has been offering support to people in need in Thunder Bay for three years. The Street Reach Resource Centre is located on 633 Simpson Street in Thunder Bay and is run by Pastor Neil Otke.
The goal of Street Reach Ministries is to offer spiritual, emotional, and physical care to people that are often set apart from the rest of the community. Pastor Otke and Street Reach Ministries volunteers work closely with front line community services to offer spiritual care along side social and physical care. Lutheran Community Care Centre Director Michael Maunula said the approach of Street Reach Ministries has always been to develop strong relationships with the street visitors. “From the start we rejected a ‘do for’ approach. Instead we knew we had to earn the trust of people on the street and take the time to get to know them as individuals. I think author Gary Stanley said it best when he said, ‘Love that doesn’t enter the other person’s world is little more than a nice thought between your ears.” The Lutheran Community Care Centre decided to open the Street Reach Ministries in July of 2004. At that time; Ted Renaud was a lay minister doing work in and around the Dryden area with native people and travelling to the reserves. LCCC approached Renaud to begin the Street Reach Ministries work in Thunder Bay as its first chaplain. After nine months; Renaud left Street Reach for a new position in Dryden. Neil Otke took over as Street Chaplain in September of 2005 and hasn’t looked back since. His job was to reach out to the people in and around the Simpson street area, network with neighbouring agencies and seek to build a community of support, faith, and care with the people in the area. Otke is an ordained minister with a Master of Divinity degree from Concordia Lutheran Seminary, Edmonton and an undergraduate degree in Social Work. He led an inner city church in Edmonton for ten years that provided outreach services to the community. Otke is also an Army Reserve Padre. Besides Edmonton, Otke has served congregations in Timmins and Saskatchewan. In the field of Social Work; he has worked in Kenora, Inuvik and Vancouver in areas such as alcoholism, counseling, and child welfare. Otke believes the Street Reach Ministries is a front line approach with a three-fold mandate. “Our first goal is to develop relationships and we do that by offering coffee, introducing people to others at the centre and treating everybody with respect. Our second goal is being a resource for spiritual concern and we try to achieve this by listening to their stories, allowing them to set the agendas, and supporting them. Our third goal is being a resource for spiritual development which we do by praying with them, supporting them and helping them find a healthy support system like a church, faith group or whatever is going to help them become a healthier person.” The Street Reach Ministries Resource Centre is open four days a week; Monday from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Wednesday from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Thursday from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., and Saturday from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Street visitors are always welcome to drop by to talk with Pastor Neil and the volunteers, have a coffee, play cards with friends, or even catch a movie in the TV lounge. Although it is open four days a week; the Thursday night Coffee House and Talent Show seems to be the crowd pleaser. Each week, street visitors, volunteers, and guest musicians hit the small stage in the Resource Centre to entertain. Pastor Otke acts as the MC and sometimes does his turn on the guitar; always quick with a smile, joke, or hug for all.
On this night retired volunteer Ross Kerr is up on the stage playing some excellent old school country music to the delight of the audience. Kerr has been volunteering at the Resource Centre, twice a week and sometimes more, for two years and is a great example of the committed people who give their time freely to help. “I haven’t volunteered for anything since 1954 when I was in the navy. However, once I came here, I was hooked. Pastor Otke does a great job and I am with him all the way! I’ve been hooked since the first day because it’s so fun to come down here and share with the people here.” The street visitors who drop in to the Centre do so for a variety of reasons; but one of the main ones seems to be the friendly and relaxed atmosphere created by Pastor Otke and his volunteers. Glen, 52, says he feels at home at the Centre and comes three times a week. “I like the Centre because of the friendly people; it gives us a chance to talk and have coffee, relax and have fun and also listen to some great music.”
Dorothy, 69, says the Centre is a real home for a lot of people and she also drops in three times a week. “I enjoy coming here because it takes the people off the street and we can talk and share coffee. I also like it because I’ve made a lot of new friends. My favourite night is the Coffee House. This place gives people a real positive uplift and maybe gives them ideas on how to change their lives.”
At the end of the evening of fun, music, and snacks; everybody forms a circle and Pastor Otke leads them in a positive prayer before everybody leaves. Another Street Reach Ministries volunteer is Jeanna Faykes, who worked as an intern this past summer at the Care Centre. The third year Lakehead University nursing student from Atikokan, Ontario said she gained so much from the experience personally that she decided to stay on as a volunteer during the school year. “I love working at Street Reach because I learn so much about life and the world around me that I would probably not understand or realize at such a young age. My eyes have been opened to the reality of our world, I see the hidden lifestyles of many that most in our society either have no knowledge of or have just decided to close their eyes and pretend that these realities do not exist. Working here can be very difficult at times, and there are nights when I go home and just remind myself to breathe.”
Faykes added that although sometimes the work can be challenging; it is well worth her time and effort. “This job shows me to see the raw emotions and the pain of others, it allows me to be a helping hand and a listening ear ... mainly it allows me to be an advocate for these voices that are crying for help. I need to see these amazing individuals, for they remind me of who I am and what it is that I want to do with my life. ” Faykes said that each day at Street Reach is different for her. As a nursing student, she is almost always giving some sort of first aid to wounds of various sorts. She practices hand-washing with the individuals that she helps; which will hopefully promote more healthy lifestyles in the future. She visits with individuals, laughs, gives advice, takes advice, serves coffee and tea, researches medical conditions that individuals ask about, does hospital visits, takes individuals to walk-in clinics, gives hugs and directs the street visitors to community resources available to them. The Street Reach Ministries and its Resource Centre are just two examples of the great ways that the Lutheran Community Care Centre works to build a better Thunder Bay and to support and empower people to be happier and healthier. For more information on the Street Reach Ministries and Resource Centre;
For more information on the Lutheran Community Care Centre;
Sep. 16, 2007
Street Minister Otke to Lecture at Lakehead Thunder Bay’s popular street outreach minister Neil Otke will be delivering a lecture at Lakehead University on Tuesday, September 18th at 10:00 am in Room 2024 of the Ryan Building. The theme of Otke’s lecture will be, “Helping People Get What They Want; Especially Underdogs.” Otke will be addressing the students of the Politics Tactics Course; a course for third year political science students taught by Professor Laure Paquette. The focus of Paquette’s course is to expose students to a diverse range of strategic thinking and she brings in guest lecturers on this topic ranging from people like Neil Otke to stock brokers.
Otke is the chaplain for the Lutheran Community Care Centre's popular Street Reach Ministries located on Simpson Street in Thunder Bay. The outreach ministry offers help to Thunder Bay people in crisis in such areas as emotional and spiritual counseling as well as offering popular activities such as their regular Thursday night coffee house talent show. Otke said he is very happy to have the opportunity to address Lakehead students on the topic of achieving goals in the face of adversity. “I am very pleased to get to address all of these young bright students and to talk to them about what I do. I will focus on my work with youth and focus on the idea of getting the right people at the right place at the right time to get things done.” Paquette said Otke will be very beneficial for her students. “I’ve asked Neil to come in to talk about his work with youth in crisis. I believe this topic is very fitting with our course goals and Neil will be able to show our students a different way of strategic thinking.” The lecture is also open to all students at Lakehead University as well as the general public. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Professor Laure Paquette:
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Lutheran Community Care Centre Website: http://www.lccctbay.org/
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